Fischnaller, Greiner move closer to officially locking up US Olympic luge berths

WINTERBERG, Germany (AP) — USA Luge is likely sending three women and two men to the singles races at next month's Milan Cortina Olympics, after Emily Fischnaller and Matthew Greiner appeared to clinch spots with their World Cup finishes on Saturday.

The International Luge Federation has not officially told national teams yet how many spots they have earned in the Milan Cortina fields, but the expectation — after Saturday's fifth and final singles Olympic qualifier of the season — is that it'll be Summer Britcher, Ashley Farquharson and Fischnaller on the U.S. women's team, with Jonny Gustafson and Greiner on the U.S. men's team.

USA Luge plans to announce its Olympic nominations on Monday.

Austria’s Hannah Prock won the women’s World Cup race Saturday, with Germany’s Julia Taubitz second and Italy’s Verena Hofer third. Lisa Schulte of Austria was fourth, one spot ahead of Britcher — who is now third in the World Cup seasonlong standings.

Farquharson crashed in her first run and did not finish but walked away with no apparent major issues. Fischnaller was 18th on Saturday.

If it is Britcher, Farquharson and Fischnaller on the Milan Cortina singles team for the U.S., as now expected, it would be the second consecutive time that trio represents USA Luge on the Olympic stage.

In the men’s race, Austria’s Jonas Mueller edged Germany’s Felix Loch — still the World Cup leader — for the win, with Nico Gleirscher of Austria placing third.

Gustafson was the top American man, placing ninth. Greiner was 15th, five spots ahead of fellow American Tucker West — who has been trying to race through injuries all season. Those results moved Greiner past West in the Olympic qualifying standings, and that means if USA Luge gets only two men's singles Olympic spots, as expected, Greiner would be joining Gustafson on the squad.

“I had the best race of my career on my favorite track in the world today and got the job done when it mattered," Greiner said. "It’s literally a dream come true.”

Based on Saturday's results, it also appears that the FIL will allocate two spots — one men's singles, one women's singles — to Russian athletes who would compete as neutral sliders at the Olympics. The Russians did not compete on top international circuits over the last three seasons in response to their nation's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, though had some athletes permitted to compete this season in a chance to qualify for Milan Cortina.

At St. Moritz, Switzerland, Kaillie Humphries Armbruster's fourth-place finish in women's monobob was the top finish of the day for the U.S. — which will announce its Olympic teams for bobsled and skeleton on Jan. 19.

Bree Walker of Australia got her series-leading third win of the season, with Melanie Hasler of Switzerland second and Katrin Beierl of Austria third. Humphries Armbruster's fourth-place showing matched her best of the season.

Elana Meyers Taylor was ninth and Kaysha Love was 14th for the U.S. in the monobob race.

In two-man, Germany's Johannes Lochner won for the fifth time in six races this season and Francesco Friedrich was second. But for the first time this season, it wasn't a German two-man medals sweep: Britain's Brad Hall drove to third, while Germany's Adam Ammour managed only a sixth-place finish.

Frank Del Duca of the U.S. was seventh.

Luge: World Cup men's doubles, women's doubles and team relay Sunday at Winterberg.

Bobsled: World Cup two-woman, four-man races Sunday at St. Moritz.

Skeleton: Men’s, women’s and mixed World Cup races on Jan. 16 at Altenberg, Germany.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

Hannah Prock, of Austria, in action during the Luge Women World Cup, single-seater, 1st run in Winterberg, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

Runner-up Julia Taubitz, of Germany, from left, winner Hannah Prock, of Austria, and third-placed Verena Hofer, of Italy, celebrate on the podium following the Luge Women World Cup, single-seater, 2nd run in Winterberg, Germany, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (David Inderlied/dpa via AP)

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israeli police said Friday that they arrested a 36-year-old caught on video attacking a nun in the latest incident targeting Christians near Jerusalem's Old City.

Police said the unnamed man was arrested after the attack Wednesday near David’s Tomb — a holy site outside Zion’s Gate on the southern side of the Old City — “on suspicion of a racially motivated attack,” and remained in custody.

Police video showed the nun bruised and the attacker wearing tzitzit, a fringed undergarment worn by some observant Jewish men.

Olivier Poquillon, the director of the French School of Biblical and Archaeological Research, said the nun was a researcher at the school. He called the attack an “act of sectarian violence" in a post on X.

The Old City in Israel-annexed east Jerusalem is a centuries-old walled enclave built atop millennia of history and home to some of the holiest sites for Jews, Christians and Muslims. It is a flash point for tensions as access and ownership to the sites are deeply entangled with the historic and political claims that lie at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Religious groups have documented a rise in acts of harassment and violence against Christian pilgrims and clergy as well as Palestinian Christian residents, including assaults and spitting, often by ultra-Orthodox Jewish yeshiva students.

Wadie Abunassar, the coordinator of the Holy Land Christian Forum, called attacks targeting Christians a growing phenomenon. He attributed the quick response to the attack on the nun to the fact that it was caught on video.

He said he felt “great anger on the system and great sadness because I feel that this will not end anytime soon.” One of the problems, he said, was the deterrence against such violence.

“Many times in such cases there are no arrests and if there are arrests, sometimes after one or two days, (suspects) are released,” he added. “In some cases, the police do not recommend the prosecution to file charges or to indict them. And in some cases, when there is indictment, the indictment is mild.”

The arrest comes as Israeli treatment of religious minorities is under scrutiny, weeks after police limited access for holiday worship to Muslims as well as Christians, up to Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa.

Israel also drew international criticism after a soldier photographed himself having bludgeoned a fallen statue of Jesus on the cross with an ax in southern Lebanon. Israeli leaders later disavowed the incident and said he would be reprimanded.

“In a city sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike, we remain committed to protecting all communities and ensuring those responsible for violence are held accountable,” Israeli police said in a social media post about the man arrested for attacking the nun.

Christian pilgrims walk past the site where a nun was attacked by a man last Wednesday, after visiting the Cenacle, traditionally believed to be the site of the Last Supper, in Jerusalem, Friday, May 1, 2026.(AP Photo/Leo Correa)

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man walks in an alley near the site where a nun was attacked by a man last Wednesday, outside the Old City of Jerusalem, Friday, May 1, 2026.(AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Christian pilgrims visit the Cenacle, traditionally believed to be the site of the Last Supper, in Jerusalem, Friday, May 1, 2026, as they walk past the site where a nun was attacked by a man last Wednesday. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)